UDC

94(480)“1982/1991”

DOI

1 0.17238/issn2227-6564.2019.4.34

Authors

Dmitriy G. Romanov
Saint Petersburg State University; Universitetskaya nab. 7-9, St. Petersburg, 199034, Russian Federation; e-mail: st065246@student.spbu.ru

Abstract

This paper analyses the stance of Finland’s foreign policy leadership towards the USSR in the 1980s and early 1990s by studying the speeches of the country’s ninth president (1982–1994), Mauno Koivisto. The author turned to the speeches made in 1980–1991 in order to identify explicit views on the policy towards the Soviet Union. More precisely, the paper presents and summarizes Koivisto’s views on Finnish-Soviet relations, Finland’s place in the two superpowers’ confrontation, and the country’s stance on the transformation of the USSR in 1985–1991. Moreover, a content-analysis of the president’s speeches was conducted to provide a detailed insight into how Finland had perceived its foreign policy during the given historical period. Further, the paper studies the frequency of key words and phrases related to the USSR, the substance of Finnish-Soviet relations, and the political controversies in the international arena during the Cold War that were of interest to Finland. The results of the content-analysis are also presented by means of tables and graphic images. The author comes to the conclusion that maintaining friendly, good-neighbourly relations with the Soviet Union was a foreign policy priority for Finland, which was determined by the country’s aim to ensure its security and stable position in Europe and the world. Another important constituent of the Finnish policy of that time was the country’s aspiration to stay out of the two superpowers’ confrontation during the Cold War.

Keywords

M. Koivisto, Finland’s foreign policy, Finnish-Soviet relations, Cold War

References

1. Kazaryan A.R. “Fenomen Koyvisto” v istorii Finlyandii [“The Phenomenon of Koivisto” in the History of Finland]. Nauchno-tekhnicheskie vedomosti SPbGPU. Ser.: Gumanitarnye i obshchestvennye nauki, 2014, no. 1, pp. 248–253.
2. Ovaska J. Mauno Koiviston idänkortti. Sotamiehestä presidentiksi. Helsinki, 2017. 335 p.
3. Iloniemi J. Mauno Koivisto presidenttinä. Helsinki, 1987. 161 p.
4. Metsalo I., Mäkeläinen A., Vanhanen H. Kun Neuvostoliitto hajosi osa 1: Suomen paikka maailmassa. Available at: https://www.ulkopolitist.fi/2016/12/16/kun-neuvostoliitto-hajosi-osa-1-suomen-paikka-maailmassa/ (accessed: 12 April 2019).
5. Lasse Lehtiseltä kovaa katumista: Miksi olin Mauno Koivistosta niin tohkeissani? Available at: https://www.verkkouutiset. fi/lasse-lehtiselta-kovaa-katumista-miksi-olin-mauno-koivistosta-niin-tohkeissani/(accessed: 12 April 2019).
6. Uutela M. Mauno Koivisto – puolueettomuuspolitiikan pragmaatikko. Available at: https://politiikasta.fi/maunokoivisto-puolueettomuuspolitiikan-pragmaatikko/ (accessed: 12 April 2019).
7. Suomi J. YYA-sopimuksen voimassaoloajan ennenaikainen pidentäminen vuonna 1983. Poliittista ystävyyttä. YYA-sopimus 60 vuotta. Henkivakuutusta, reaalipolitiikkaa, ystävyyttä? Turku, 2009, pp. 93–104.
8. Pesu M. Pienvaltiodemokratia perusetujansa turvaamassa – Suomen kansallinen identiteetti, Tshekkoslovakian miehitys ja Baltian maiden itsenäistyminen. Tampere, 2014. 116 p.
9. Pesu M. Koivisto jätti ulkopoliittisen perinnön. Available at: https://www.ulkopolitist.fi/2017/05/13/koivisto-jattiulkopoliittisen-perinnon/ (accessed: 12 April 2019).
10. Poutiainen M. Epävakaata horisontissa. Suomalaisten ulkopolitiikan asiantuntijoiden itänaapuriin liittämät uhka- ja tulevaisuuskuvat 1989–1993. Helsinki, 2014. 90 p.